


Healing Butterflies

by Harebelle



Series: Butterflies [5]
Category: Warcraft (2016)
Genre: Cute, Emotional, Hugging, LionTrust, Lothar loves Khadgar, Love, M/M, Mini Chapter, Short, sleeping
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-15
Updated: 2020-11-15
Packaged: 2021-03-09 19:06:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 545
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27581111
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Harebelle/pseuds/Harebelle
Summary: Anduin Lother lies awake at night with Khadgar in his arms. He thinks about how this dorky mage has entered his life and helped him start healing from his grief.
Relationships: Khadgar/Anduin Lothar
Series: Butterflies [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1494983
Comments: 2
Kudos: 13





	Healing Butterflies

**Author's Note:**

> This can be read as a stand-alone short and/or a mini supplement chapter after part 4 of my Butterflies series.  
> Thank you everyone who reads these and leaves kudos and comments; they mean a lot to me. And thank you to UnderscoreMax, your "Coffee Fueled Mages" work inspired me to continue with this series!

It has been nineteen days since Khadgar has moved in to Anduin Lothar’s room at Stormwind Keep. Nineteen days since they have started their relationship, and already, Lothar can feel his soul healing.

Khadgar is sleeping, held in Lothar’s arms as they lie together in their bed. The young mage’s steady breathing is a constant that grounds the Lion on nights like these, when he wakes or cannot sleep at all, when the faces of the people he has lost appear in his mind.

This night, Lothar sees Cally’s dear face, but after all these years, he’s not sure if he is truly recalling her features. He feels shame for how he behaved as a husband and father, then guilt for his feelings for the traitorous half-orc Garona, while barely knowing her.

Sighing, the Lion buries his face into the hair of the mage who somehow loves him, despite being aware of Lothar’s troubles, his loneliness, pain and insecurities. When they had first met, Khadgar had seen through Lothar’s sarcasm and dismissive remarks, and stayed by his side to face the evil threatening their home. Over time, this adorable bookworm opened his soul to Lothar and let him do the same. Khadgar has listened to Lothar’s self-loathing and never judged or turned away, and Lothar hugs the sleeping mage a little tighter in gratitude.

It’s just after dawn, and Lothar can make out the shapes of the stacks of books and scrolls placed about the room. When the mage moved in, Lothar had made a fuss over just how many tomes now shared his living space, but he loves them, because Khadgar does.

And Lothar loves Khadgar, even though they’ve only been living together for nineteen days, and have only known each other for about a year. He loves the mage’s stubborn insistence on seeing the good in everyone, even Garona. He loves Khadgar’s floppy hair and brown eyes, and how he becomes focused on some new idea or another, then researches it for hours until he falls asleep at his desk by the window. Lothar loves how his mage always smells of ink and lemon tea.

The Lion knows Khadgar loves him back, and that they might as well actually say it at this point, but he isn’t sure how to. He’s afraid to love someone again and knows he’ll probably screw it up at some point, but his bookworm deserves to hear it. A book seems like the perfect choice; maybe a letter hidden inside something Khadgar is reading, or a custom bookmark inscribed with the important words. Lothar sighs again and plans to ask Taria in the morning; she’ll jump at the chance to help arrange a romantic declaration. She’ll also be thrilled that he’s healing and moving on, and want to interrogate him about how serious this relationship is, then welcome Khadgar into the family with a dinner at her home. 

Lothar smiles to himself. He still has his sister and he still has Khadgar. He still has Stormwind and the citizens and his soldiers look up to him. His life does have meaning after all.

‘I love you, bookworm,’ he whispers into Khadgar’s hair. ‘I’ll tell you soon, I promise.’

Anduin Lothar listens to Khadgar’s breathing until he falls asleep.


End file.
